


the war is over and we are beginning

by maggiesbombshell



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Adora (She-Ra) Needs a Hug, Catra (She-Ra) Needs a Hug, F/F, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Marriage Proposal, Post-Canon, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-28
Updated: 2020-05-28
Packaged: 2021-03-02 23:28:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,778
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24425044
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maggiesbombshell/pseuds/maggiesbombshell
Summary: a few small moments between catra and adora after the war and one big one.
Relationships: Adora/Catra (She-Ra)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 206





	the war is over and we are beginning

After She-ra restored the magic to Etheria’s lands, everyone returned to their respective kingdoms. It made sense, everyone missed their homes. 

Glimmer ended up insisting that Brightmoon’s residents have a celebratory dinner.

  
  


Adora shows up of course but leaves after barely touching her food because Catra hadn’t shown up. Bow gives her a knowing look and she sprints out of the dining room. 

  
  


She doesn’t even bother to check the room Glimmer offered Catra. Adora knows exactly where she is. 

  
  


She runs up several flights of stairs, completely out of breath once she reaches the top. There’s a balcony and there Catra is. Perched on the railing.

  
  


So much had changed between them and yet Adora still felt the exact same. 

  
  


“Hey.” Adora walks closer to the rail.

  
  


“Hey.” Catra replies nonchalantly.

  
  


“Were you not feeling up for dinner?”

  
  


Catra shrugs. “Just wanted time to think. That’s all.”

  
  


Adora can’t tell exactly what she’s thinking about but she’s sure she has a good idea what. It’d been a long day to say the least.

  
  


Adora sits down. “Well if you’re not going to dinner, neither am I.”

  
  


Catra rolls her eyes but a small smile appears on her face anyway. “Go celebrate with your friends, dummy. Don’t let me ruin your night.”

  
  


“You’re not ruining it. And they’re your friends too now y’know.”

  
  


Catra’s silent.

  
  


“Is that why you came up here?”

  
  


“Not really. But the celebration Sparkles is planning had me thinking and-“ Catra shakes her head. “it’s stupid.”

  
  


“No it’s not.”

  
  


Catra sighs. “It’s just...everyone’s so excited to finally get back home and move on and I realized that I don’t really have that. I also don’t have anything outside of this stupid war. But...I guess that’s kind of my fault. Which makes the whole thing even worse.”

  
  


“I get what you mean. Brightmoon didn’t feel like home for me for a long time even though I obviously didn’t want to go back to the Frightzone.” She watches Catra’s short hair blow back with a sudden breeze.

  
  


“I guess I’ve never really had a home then. The Frightzone was never all that great but you were there and then Scorpia was there and Entrapta. But then you left, I sent Entrapta away, and Scorpia left so there really wasn’t anything there for me anymore.”

  
  


Adora pauses for a moment. “I think what I realized is that home isn’t really just a place. I mean it is a place where you stay and all but what is that place without the people you care about?”

  
  


“Is that what you meant when you said you’d take me home?” If Catra got any quieter she’d be whispering.

  
  


“Yeah. And obviously Brightmoon feels a lot more welcoming now but it wouldn’t be the same without Glimmer and Bow. They’re part of my family, part of my home and-“

  
  


Catra looks at her, her expression expectant yet desperate. 

  
  


Adora continues. “And you are too. Especially you.”

  
  


Catra turns back to the sky, lowering her head. She’d stated she wanted to go home after Adora, Bow, and Glimmer rescued her but she didn’t know exactly where that was at the time. She just wanted to get away from Prime. But she knew to some extent that she would go with Adora if she was able to. 

  
  


“You really mean that?”

  
  


Adora smiles. “Yeah, I do.”

  
  


Catra hops off of the railing and sits next to Adora, pulling her knees up to her chest. She knows where her home is now.

  
  


Adora breaks the comfortable moment of silence. “So…”

  
  


“So?”

  
  


Adora smirks. “You love me…”

  
  


Catra shoves her shoulder. “Shut up!”

  
  


Adora snorts and Catra pretends to be annoyed but her grin was getting harder to hide by the second.

* * *

Catra’s always been an incredibly light sleeper.

So of course she notices when Adora goes back to waking up at the brink of dawn a few weeks after Horde Prime is defeated. 

They all have a role in reconstructing Etheria and their own daily duties but Catra has Adora’s schedule memorized and it doesn’t require being up that early. She decides to ignore it the first few times because she also knows Adora just likes having a routine. But recently they’ve been spending late nights in Brightmoon’s war room with Bow and Glimmer and Catra knows she isn’t getting any sleep.

  
  


One night Catra hears rustling and a belt snapping as her eyes slowly flutter open. She rubs her eyes hoping that’ll allow them to adjust quicker. “Adora, the sun isn’t even out yet.”   
  


Adora turns her head. “Sorry! I didn’t mean to wake you.”

  
  


Catra yawns. “Can you come back to bed? It’s way too early for you to be up anyway.” 

  
  


“I uh- I got assigned an early assignment.”

  
  


Catra sits up and stares at Adora who’s wringing her hands. “No assignment takes place this early. Also, I have your schedule memorized. So can you please explain to me what this is  _ really  _ about?”

  
  


Adora lifts both of her hands up to the sides of her face, tucking loose hair behind her ears. “I just- I have to do something.”

  
  


“Adora there’s nothing to do-”

  
  


“I know I just feel...useless. I felt pretty good after we first defeated Prime but now it’s like i’m just waiting for something bad to happen so I decided to prepare just in case.”

  
  


Catra sighs. “What exactly are you doing to  _ prepare?” _

  
  


“Well I’ve been training for one.”

  
  


“Adora you didn’t even eat dinner yesterday. And then you tossed and turned for hours last night so I know you hardly got any sleep. That’s not-”

  
  


Adora laughs. “It’s not what? Healthy? I know you of all people aren’t lecturing me on healthy coping mechanisms.”

  
  


Catra scowls. She’s tempted to go below the belt like Adora but she takes a deep breath instead. They’re both silent.

  
  


“Sorry. That was mean.”

  
  


Catra thinks that’s something she would- or would’ve- said. “Adora look, I’m not trying to lecture you or anything and trust me I know that you can’t relax to save your life but...I’m worried about you. You think I or anyone else here wants to see you in the infirmary after passing out due to sleep deprivation?”

  
  


“No, but I don’t know what else to do. Just lying here feels wrong.”

  
  


Catra understands Adora’s tendency to throw herself into tasks probably more than anyone. She’d do the same so feeling of inferiority, abandonment, and massive amounts of guilt wouldn’t consume her on the spot. (It didn’t work.) “How about this, you get at least seven hours of sleep every night and you can go train or whatever every other weekday. I’ll even go with you.”

  
  


Their room is nearly pitch black but Catra can still see Adora’s eyes light up. “Really?”

  
  


“Yeah. We look out for each other, remember?”

  
  


Adora smiles and walks back over to the bed. She climbs on and sits next to Catra. “I love you.”

  
  


Catra’s heart swells. “I love you too.”

  
  


Adora rests her head on Catra’s shoulder, shutting her eyes.

  
  


“And Adora?”

  
  


“Hm?”

  
  


“You saved the Universe. It’s okay for you to  _ sit around _ sometimes.”

* * *

_ Cast out all the shadows. Prime sees all. _

  
  


_ Three clones follow Catra. Two holding each side of her shoulders, one walking behind her to make sure that if she somehow managed to fight the other two off he could grab a hold of her.  _

  
  


_ If this happened a few years ago she would fight them off. She would fight like hell. If this was a few years ago she probably wouldn’t even be in this situation. _

  
  


_ They cut her hair. She was strapped to an operating chair and they cut it off inch by inch. They told her she would appreciate this in the end as they could sense how much pain she’d been in recently and called her little sister. She felt nauseous but she didn’t say a word. _

  
  


_ This is her one good deed. She’d caused enough pain and hurt and this one thing wouldn’t make up for it all but at least everyone would know that she truly is sorry for it all. _

  
  


_ Her hair now stops at the nape of her neck and she silently sobs as a clone shoves an operating tool into it. Catra internally scolds herself, she said she wouldn’t give them the satisfaction of seeing her cry. At least she’d go out doing what one of the things she does best. Lying. _

  
  


_ The pit in front of her begins to sizzle and she tries to think about good times. Running around the Frightzone with Adora, sleepovers with Adora, sparring with her...Catra’s thoughts suddenly drift to the battle of Brightmoon and a corrupted version of herself in the portal she opened. _

  
  


_ Cast out all the shadows… _

  
  


_ She tries to block the clones out by thinking of Scorpia now. She thinks about the super pal trio drawing she found stupid at the time and hanging out with her after missions even though Scorpia did most of the talking. She thinks about the Crimson wastes and their party and...and threatening to taze her and what she told her the last time she saw her. _

  
  


_ Prime sees all. _

  
  


_ They begin to lower her into the pit. Catra tries to keep her mind blank but memories of a young Adora seep into her mind and flashes from a perfect portal world. She tells herself that she won’t scream. _

  
  


_ Her head finally goes under, her hands above her head, still in the air and shaking. She screams. _

  
  


Catra wakes up panting, a slick layer of sweat across her forehead.

  
  


A trembling hand touches the back of her neck and suddenly she can feel the operating tool again. She looks at Adora who’s still sound asleep before sliding out of their bed and into the bathroom. 

  
  


Catra glances at herself in the mirror and immediately looks away after being reminded of her hair. It’s longer now, stopping right above her chin, but still nowhere near its original length.

  
  


She leans against the nearest wall and sits against it, knees pulled up to her chest. Tears roll down to her cheeks but she doesn’t make a sound. 

  
  


Eventually she buries her head in her knees. 

  
  
  
  


Catra doesn’t know how much time has passed but she feels a warm hand on her arm and she peeks at the figure with one eye.

  
  


“Catra?”

  
  


She lifts her head, eyes focused on the bathroom floor. “Sorry. Did I wake you?”

  
  


“No.” Adora says softly. “Melog did though and I noticed you weren’t in bed.”

  
  


Melog reflecting her emotions could be a blessing and a curse.

  
  


“Are you okay?”

  
  


Catra sniffles. “Yeah. Just a nightmare.”

  
  


Adora sits next to her and places a hand on her knee. “Do you maybe wanna talk about it?”

  
  


Catra gulps. “It was- it was about Prime and his dumb clones and what happened before you saved me.” She doesn’t like to talk about what happened in depth.

  
  


Adora moves her hand from Catra’s knee and puts her arm around the brunette. “It’s okay. He’s gone and you’re safe. I promise.”

  
  


Catra leans into the embrace. “I know. It just doesn’t feel like it sometimes and I know it’s ridiculous-”

  
  


“It’s not.”

  
  


Catra looks at Adora for a moment who’s kind blue eyes are staring at her intently. She looks away and sighs. 

  
  


“Hey, you Glimmer and Bow tell me all the time that I don’t have to deal with everything alone so why would I let you?”

  
  


Catra slowly shifts her gaze before burying her face in Adora’s neck. “Thank you.” She pauses. “I love you.”   
  


“I love you too.”

* * *

Catra’s grip on the punching bag between them loosens for a moment as she yawns. Adora notices how tired she looks so she stops.

  
  


“You done with the bag?” Her voice is slightly muffled as she asked in the middle of another yawn.

  
  


“You don’t have to stay down here Catra. You’re tired, you need sleep.”

  
  


“So do you.”

  
  


Adora looks away.

  
  


Catra lets go of the bag altogether and walks over to a rack where she placed a waterbottle. “You see this? It’s coffee. Sparkles taught me how to make it. It tastes like shit but she said it’s supposed to taste that way or else it doesn’t work.” She brings the bottle up to her mouth and chugs it.

A small smile grows on Adora’s face for a moment. Sometimes she still couldn’t believe that Catra is not only here with her at Brightmoon but friends with Glimmer and Bow.

  
  


She wipes her mouth with the back of her hand. “See? The sleepiness is gone already.” Catra yawns again and slaps a hand over her mouth.

  
  


Adora lifts and eyebrow. “Oh really?”

  
  


“Maybe it’s not shitty enough. Anyway, what do you do next?”

  
  


Adora sighs. “Usually I do some sword practice.”

  
  


“As She-ra?”

  
  


“I start off doing regular moves and then I go into my She-ra form.” Adora lifts a sword out of a case. “I guess you could just watch for this one I guess.”

  
  


Catra’s eyes widen. “You know what? I have an even better idea. How about you teach me how to use a sword?”

  
  


“Really?”

  
  


“Yeah! Then I can beat you in a swordfight and after that, I can tell everyone that I beat  _ the _ She-ra in a sword fight.”

  
  


Adora giggles. “You’re insufferable.”

  
  


“You love it.”

  
  


“I do.” She lifts another sword out of the case and hands it to Catra.

  
  


Catra holds it pointed downwards, the side of the blade facing forward.

  
  


Adora drops her own sword. “Ok, first we need to work on your stance and how you hold the sword.” She places her hand on top of Catra’s. Adora slightly turns her hand so that the blade is sideways again. “Now look at how I’m standing.” She widens her stance.

  
  


Catra mirrors her.

  
  


“Next, you’re gonna lift the sword to the side and slowly raise it  _ away  _ from your head because trust me, you don’t wanna whack yourself in the face.”

  
  


Catra snorts.

  
  


“What?”

  
  


“Just imagining you whacking yourself in the face with a sword.

  
  


“Ha. Ha.” Adora replies sarcastically. “Moving on, once the sword is in the air you can swing it forward, downward, or to the side.” She picks up her own sword and demonstrates the movements. 

  
  


Catra copies them with ease.

  
  


“Woah.” She couldn’t say she was impressed, Catra’s always been skilled but beginner’s training with the sword wasn’t exactly easy for her.

  
  


Catra shrugs. “I’m a fast learner.”

“You wanna try some hands on training?”

  
  


Catra knows exactly what Adora is implying and grins. “Do I really need to answer that?”

  
  


She picks widens the space between her legs and stands directly in front of Catra. Catra takes the first swing, her sword clinging against Adora’s. They go back and forth for a few minutes.

  
  


“Is this gonna be your new weapon?” Adora asks.

  
  


“Nah. I’m better without one. Besides, we don’t have to worry about that anymore. Or at least not anytime soon I hope.”

  
  


_ That’s a nice wish. _

  
  


_ Though there will be no future. Not for you. _

  
  


Adora’s sword falls out of her hand and Adora nearly collapses right next to it. 

  
  


She hears Catra toss hers to the other side of the room and in a second she’s on her knees right by her side. “Adora? Are you okay?” Blue and gold eyes search her face. “We don’t have to fight or whatever if you don’t want to.”

  
  


A chest rattling sob comes out of Adora’s mouth. “I’m sorry.”

  
  


“Hey, don’t apologize.”

  
  


Adora sniffles. “It’s just that- I know that he’s gone but I feel like I can’t let my guard down. And another part of me feels like…”

  
  


Catra waits for her to continue.

“Another part of me  _ wants _ there to be something else. Because if there isn’t why am I even here? I...sometimes I feel like maybe I was supposed to die in the heart.”

  
  


“Adora…”

  
  


“I was brought to this planet to be a weapon and- and what good is a weapon without a war.”

  
  


Catra’s hands cup the blonde’s face. “That’s what the first ones intended for you, Adora. And all this time I thought you chose the big heroics over everything- over  _ me.  _ But you didn’t. You didn’t really have a choice. Not until the heart. And you still have a choice so you get to be Adora. Not a noble warrior princess used in battles, not the carrier of the failsafe, not a  _ force captain _ , just Adora. The woman who loves horses, Brightmoon’s food, and anything relatively competitive. And your friends love Adora.  _ I  _ love Adora.”

  
  


Adora wipes her nose. “Catra…”

  
  


Catra’s hands drop from her face. “Ugh was my motivational speech not good or something? In my defense, this was kind of abrupt.”

  
  


Adora laughs. “It was amazing.” She wipes the remaining tears on her face even though she’s positive her eyes are all puffy and red rimmed. “I love you  _ so  _ much.” Adora wraps her arms around the woman in front of her.

  
  


Maybe it’d take some work and getting used to, but she thinks she could be ‘just Adora’. Catra does have the tendency to make her feel like she can do anything.

* * *

Several years after Horde Prime’s defeat Spinerella and Netossa celebrate renewing their vows and have an entire ceremony since their original one was in the middle of the war. 

  
  


Adora and Catra sit between Scorpia and Perfuma along with Glimmer and Bow. 

Bow is the first one to cry during the ceremony, Adora following. Catra tries really hard not to and Adora knows this because she has a very distinct face.

  
  


Eventually she gives in and begins to sniffle. Scorpia offers her a handkerchief and Catra declines. “What would I need that for? I’m not crying.” Her voice cracks at the end and she snatches the handerchief out of Scorpia’s hand. Scorpia smiles and pats her shoulder.

  
  


Adora swears she sees Glimmer wipe away a few tears of her own as well.

  
  
  


Despite it not being the original ceremony, Spinerella still throws a bouquet of flowers Perfuma made. Adora’s at the food table eating tiny sandwiches Entrapta catered when suddenly everyone turns to look at her.

  
  


Her eyes finds Catra in the middle of dance floor holding a pink and white flower bouquet, completely unaware of what’s going on.

  
  


Glimmer and Bow rush over to her and pull her into a tight hug. Catra hesitantly walks over as well, not sure what the big deal is.

  
  


“You don’t  _ know? _ ” Bow squeaks. 

  
  


“Whoever catches the bouquet is the person that’s getting married next!” Glimmer says.

  
  


Catra’s eyes widen. “Oh.”

  
  


“You  _ do _ know what marriage is right?” Glimmer turns and whispers to Bow. “Someone explained to her what marriage is right…”

  
  


Catra rolls her eyes. “Yes, I know what marriage is.”

  
  


Adora looks back at the podium and the stage where Spinerella and Netossa were for a moment. She wonders what it would be like with Catra up there.

  
  
  


They dance for the rest of the night, both of them ending up barefoot at somepoint. Adora’s tipsy by the end of the night and Catra walks them both over to Swiftwind, her hand around Adora’s waist. 

  
  


Adora clings onto Catra instead of vice versa for obvious reasons. Her head is partially on Catra’s shoulder and she takes in her familiar scent, the strong breeze sending Catra’s unruly hair in all directions as well as her own, and Catra’s warm on her fingers as she clutches even harder. She thinks back to the ceremony. Maybe it’s the alcohol in her system but-

  
  


“You good?” Catra says rather loudly to talk over the wind.

  
  


“Yeah.” Adora thinks she could stay like this for the rest of her life.

  
  
  


Adora wakes up before Catra the next morning and it turns out it wasn’t the alcohol in her system. She barges into Glimmer’s office, relieved to see Bow is in there too. 

  
  


Bow chuckles. “Good morning to you too.”

  
  


Glimmer opens up her mouth to add on but Adora cuts her off.

  
  


“I wanna marry Catra.”

* * *

Adora’s initial proposal plan was elaborate and well thought out and she effectively hid it from Catra for a month. The princesses were in on it, Perfuma in charge of finding out what Catra’s favorite flowers are during their next meditation session, Scorpia in charge of music, and Entrapta in charge of getting miniature versions of all of Catra’s favorite Brightmoon dishes. Glimmer and Bow were supposed to keep her distracted if they were planning throughout the day and Adora could say they were doing pretty well.

  
  


Or at least until her, Catra, Glimmer, and Bow were visiting the Kingdom of Snows.

  
  


Catra’s head rests in her lap and Adora idly runs her fingers through her hair as she reads through a document Frosta gave her. She sets in down for a moment and picks a mug up off the bedside table beside her.

  
  


“What do you think about the concept of marriage?”

  
  


Adora nearly chokes on the liquid in her throat. She clears her throat. “Um- it’s uh, nice. Why do you ask?”

  
  


“Just wondering.” Catra pauses. “Would you do it with me?”   
  


Adora snorts. Not only at Catra’s question but at the pure irony of it all. “Yeah. I mean, who else is there?”

  
  


Catra frowns slightly.

  
  


“Wait! I didn’t mean it like  _ that. _ ” Adora’s tone softens. “You know you’re the only one for me.”

  
  


Catra’s lips slowly turn upward. “I know.” Catra looks as if she’s contemplating something for a moment. “We should get married.”

  
  


Adora feels as if her eyes migh pop out of their sockets. “We should?”

  
  


“Yeah! Like right now.”

  
  


Adora blinks. She looks at Catra’s bright eyes and contagious smile and her plan goes right out of the window. “Okay. Let’s do it.”

  
  


They giggle like they’re kids running around the Frightzone again, boots slightly sinking in the wet snow and mitten covered hands holding one another as they rush over to Swiftwind.

  
  
  
  


Adora sighs happily. “Wife...I like that word.”

  
  


“Me too. Has a nice ring to it.”

  
  
  


They wake up Glimmer and Bow to tell them the news once they got back. Bow screams out of excitement as Adora hands him the certificate that was folded into a square out of her pocket. Glimmer acts annoyed claiming that she put up with Catra for nothing but Adora notices the growing smile on her face.

  
  


She grabs Catra’s hand and intertwines it with her own. She doesn’t let go.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> season 5 was amazing and not to mention that we won!! anyways i hope you all enjoyed this <33
> 
> tumblr: catrasbastard  
> twitter: catrazuIas


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